Fishermen are constantly in search of artificial fishing lures which will attract desired species of fish. In pursuit of highly desirable lures, a wide variety of different constructions of lures with body sections that are articulated with respect to each other, and sometimes with flexible material portions which "quiver" and trigger strikes, have been provided, such as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,545,683, 1,607,107, 1,692,935, 4,654,955, and 5,522,170. According to the invention a fishing lure is provided that has the advantages of the above mentioned lures as far as articulated body sections, including a flexible portion, are concerned, but also has other advantages.
The fishing lure according to the present invention has a readily replaceable flexible tail section, and the rear end of the tail section has a bulge with a socket for receiving a rattle. A noise making action of a rattle has been demonstrated (such as by the SWIM BAIT.RTM. and TUBE KRAW.RTM. lures sold by Kalin Farms of Brawley, California) to be very effective in attracting desired fish species. Also, the lure according to the invention has a particularly configured scoop in the front and top portions of the head section which causes erratic action of the head section as the lure is pulled through the water, thereby simulating the movement of a small fish or other aquatic animal that is particularly attractive to game fish.
According to one aspect of the present invention a fishing lure is provided comprising the following components: A substantially rigid head section having a bait simulating appearance, a front end and a rear end. A substantially rigid middle section having a front end and a rear end. A multi-dimensional pivot connection between the head section rear end and the middle section front end. A flexible material tail section having a front end and a rear end, the front end of the tail section fixed to the rear end of the middle section. At least one hook receiving connection fixed to at least one of the head and middle sections. At least one attachment for connecting at least one of the head and middle sections to a fishing line. A three-dimensional bulge formed at the rear end of the tail section. And, a rattle mounted by the bulge, the rattle making noise when the tail section is moved through water.
The head and the middle sections each have a top and a bottom, and the at least one hook receiving connection preferably includes a connection at the bottom of one of (or both of) the head and middle sections. The lure also comprises a substantially continuous scoop formed in the head section at the front end thereof and in the top of the head section, for causing erratic action of the head section as the lure is pulled through the water. Where the head section simulates a fish, including eyes spaced from the front end, the scoop extends from the front end of the head section past the eyes. The eyes preferably include recesses formed in the head section, and the scoop extends about 50% or more of the length of the head section and includes two different angled portions. For example the scoop has a proportional length of between about 21/4-21/2 inches, and a proportional maximum depth of between about 3/16-5/16 inch (e.g. about 1/4 inch), when the head section is between about 4 and 41/2 inches long. The fishing line attachment preferably comprises an attachment mounted to the head section front end, within the scoop.
The tail section preferably comprises an integral injection molded piece of soft plastic, of the same type used for "SWIM BAIT.RTM." lures sold by Kalin Farms, and has a socket receiving the rattle. The rattle may comprise, as is conventional per se with Kalin SWIM BAIT.RTM. lures, a substantially spherically shaped hollow hard element (e.g. clear plastic) with at least one hard rattling element within it (e.g. a metal sphere). The rattle is removable from the socket without destroying the socket or rattle, and replaceable in the socket.
The tail section is preferably removable, connected to the middle section by two (or more) removable metal pins extending from opposite sides of the middle section into an open channel in the rear of the middle section, and spaced along the length of the channel. To replace the tail, one merely tears out the existing tail (the pins are harder than the tail soft plastic so that the tail rips) and using a needle-nosed pliers one reaches into the tail channel and slides the metal pins outwardly to clear the channel. Replacement can be made with a tail section specifically for that purpose, or by using a conventional SWIM BAIT.RTM. lure rattler tail, and cutting off the head square to obtain the desired overall fit and length. Then the new tail is slipped into the channel in the middle section and the metal pins are pushed back into place.
That is, according to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of using a fishing lure having head and middle substantially rigid sections connected together by a multi-dimensional pivot at a front end of the middle section, a channel in a rear end of the middle section, and a flexible tail section held in the channel by at least two hard material readily removable pins extending into the channel from opposite sides, and spaced from each other along the length of the channel. The method comprises the steps of: (a) ripping the flexible tail section out of the channel by pulling on the flexible tail section so that it is torn by the hard pins; (b) using a needle nose pliers or the like, engaging the readily removable pins and sliding them out of the channel; (c) placing a new flexible material tail section into the channel; and (d) pushing the pins back into the channel so that they penetrate the flexible material tail section and hold the tail section in place in the channel. The method also preferably comprises the further step of making the new flexible material tail section used in the practice of steps (c) and (d) by taking a pre-existing soft flexible material lure having a head and tail, and cutting off the head of the pre-existing soft flexible material lure and squaring the pre-existing lure off so that it fits properly in the channel.
According to another aspect of the present invention a fishing lure is provided comprising the following components: A substantially head section having a bait simulating appearance, a front end and a rear end. A substantially rigid middle section having a front end and a rear end. A multi-dimensional pivot connection between the head section rear end and the middle section front end. A flexible material tail section having a front end and a rear end, the front end of the tail section fixed to the rear end of the middle section. At least one hook receiving connection fixed to at least one of the head and middle sections. At least one attachment for connecting at least one of the head and middle sections to a fishing line. The head and middle sections each have a top and a bottom; and the at least one hook-receiving connection includes a connection at the bottom of at least one of the head and middle sections. And, a substantially continuous scoop formed in the head section at the front end thereof and in the top of the head section, for causing erratic action of the head section as the lure is pulled through the water. The details of the lure according to this aspect of the invention are preferably as described in the preceding paragraphs.
It is the-primary object of the present invention to provide a highly effective and readily utilizable fishing lure. This and other objects of the invention will become clear from an inspection of the detailed description of the invention and from the appended claims.